Mechanism for separating sheetlike materials



sept- 3 1952 E. JOHANSSON ETAL 2,611,471

\ MECHANISM FUR SEPARATING SHEETLIKE MATERIALS.

File d May 4, 1950 Patented Sept. 23, 1952 MECHANISM FOR SEPARATING SHEETLIKE MATERIALS 7 Erik J ohansson, Bertil Bergvall, and Uno Alfredsson,

J onkoping,y Sweden,

assignors to AB Svenska Flaktfabrike'n, Stockholm, Sweden Application May 4, 1950, Serial No. 160,014 In Sweden July 12, 1949 In producing sheet-like materials, for instance plates or sheets manufactured of fibrous materials such as defibrated wood, peat or the like, it is customary for the sheets to be treated in pairs disposed one upon the other with their smooth facesurfaces in confronting relation; In this, condition the plates or sheets are received in a hardening chamber where they are subjected to heat-treatment to increase their strength and to actuate the finished color of the sheets.

Theypresent invention relates to novel mechanism for separating and feeding such superimposed pairs of sheets or plates. Accordingto the present invention the mechanism comprises, for example, two belt conveyors arranged one after the other in tandem fashion. The first con- 2 Claims. (Cl. 19835) veyor is associated with a flat table with the 1 posedabove thetable top is a rollerhaving radially projecting arms which upon rotation of the rollerare adapted to engage the uppermost sheet of the pair and slide the same along the surface of the bottom isheet'and engage the leading edge of said upper sheet between a pair of. driven nip, rolls located at the opposite;v end of the table and operable to feed the uppermost sheet onto the. second conveyor. The first conveyor is stopp'edduring separation and feeding of. the upper sheet so that the lower sheet remains in position upon the table top. However, when the upper sheet-has been separated and fed-to the desired extent onto the second conveyor the first conveyor is again actuated to feed the leading edge of the bottom sheet between the nip rolls whereupon the latter operate to feed the'bottom sheet onto the second conveyor.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention and various features and details of the construction and operation thereof are hereinafter fully set forth and described and shown in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of apparatus made according to the present invention; and Fig. 2 is an end elevational view of the apparatus as viewed from the left hand side of Fig. 1.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, the relatively superimposed pair of sheets to be separated and fed in the manner previously described are designated by reference numerals 4 and 5. Formed longitudinally in the top 10 of a table II at uniformly spaced intervals transversely thereof are elongated slots or openings v 2 Hla'in which are disposed the terminal end portions of the upper course of a plurality of endless belts 9 of a conveyor assembly. At the end of their upper course the endless belts 9' pass about suitable pulleys which are secured upon a shaft 911 which extends transversely of the table H at the underside thereof and adjacent the forward or discharge end of the table. The shaft 9a has mounted on one end thereof a sprocket 9b which is driven-by a chain 12b from a sprocket l2a. on the shaft of an electric motor 12.

Mounted transversely above the table top 10 adjacent the sheet-receiving end thereof is a roller 2 having radially projecting fingers or flaps l and 3 which are composed of resilient material such as, for example, rubber. The roller 2 is fixedly mounted upon a transverse shaft 2a hav ing a sprocket 2b thereon which is driven, for example, by a chain l3b from a sprocket I30. on the shaft of the electric motor l3. The projecting fingers or flaps l and 3 of the roller 2 are constructed and arranged upon rotation of said roller to engage the uppermost sheet 4 of a pair of sheets deposited on the table top ID by the conveyor belts 9 to advance-the upper sheet 4 relative to the bottom sheet 5 and engage 'the leading edge of said upper sheet 4 between a pair of nip rolls Sand 8.

The nip rolls 6 and -8 are disposed one above the other (and extend transversely of the table II adjacent the discharge end thereof, the nip rolls 6 and 8 being positioned vertically with respect tothe tabletop lill so that the nip 'of said rolls is approximately in the plane of the table top H). 1

At the opposite side of the "nip rolls 6 and-8 from the table N there is provided a second belt conveyor I which has its upper course extending approximately in the plane of the table top H] and the nip of the rolls 6 and 8. The receiving end of the second conve'yor'l passes about one or more pulleys or wheels 1a mounted'on a shaft lb which extends transversely of and ad--: jacent the discharge end of the table and this shaft lb may be driven by a chain l4 and sprocket I la from a separate source'of rotary power such as an electric motor 15. 1

In accordance with the present invention, the nip rolls 6 and 8 are positively driven and this may be accomplished, for example, by means of a conventional chain drive Hi from the second conveyor shaft 1b to the roll Band from the latter by means of gears I! to the roll 6.

According to th invention, travel of the conveyor belts 9 is stopped for a preselected interval of time after each pair of sheets 4 and 5 is delivered by said conveyor onto the table top H]. To this end mechanism (not shown) is provided for stopping the motor [2 at the desired instant and for starting it again at the proper time. Such mechanism may be either a simple manually operated ofi-onswitch of any well-known'type to be manipulated by the operator of the machine, or the mechanism may comprise any wellknown automatic control for turning the motor I2 oif and then on such as, for example, limit switches properly located for actuation by the sheets to stop and start the conveyor 9 at the desired times. Such mechanisms are, of course, well-known and understood in this and other arts and in view of their common usage it is deemed unnecessary to illustrate and describe a typical arrangement.

In operation of the apparatus of the present invention, a pair of relatively superimposed sheets 4 and 5 is delivered by the conveyor belts 9 onto the top of the table i l with the bottom sheet resting upon the friction surface of the table. When the superimposed sheets 4 and 5 areproperly positioned on-the table top [0 the conveyor belts 9 are stopped by either manually or automatically shutting off the driving motor [2 as previously described. At this time the radial fingers or flaps I and 3 on the driven roller 2 engage the upper sheet 4 and slide the same upon the bottom sheet 5 to engage the leading edge of the upper sheet 4 between the driven nip rolls 6 and 8 which thereupon operate to-feed the upper sheet onto the second conveyor 1. When the desired extent of separation or offset of the upper sheet 4 with respect to the lower sheet 5 is obtained the conveyor 9 is again placed in operation thereby feeding the leading edge of the bottom sheet 5 between the driven nip rolls 6 and 8 so that the latter operate to feed the sheets 4 and 5 onto the second conveyor 1 with the desired amount of separation or offset of the sheet 4 with respect to the sheet 5.

It will be understood that th amount of relative'separation or ofiset of the upper sheet with respect to the lower sheet depends upon the length of time that the conveyor 8 is stopped after each pair of sheets is delivered to the table andthis time may be varied as desired to effect delivery of a, pair of sheets with a very small amount of relative offset or separation of the upper sheet with respect to the lower sheet as shown the drawing, or to separate and feed entirely the upper sheet 4-onto the second conveyor 1 before the lower sheet 5 is advanced to the nip'rolls 6 and 8.

While a particular embodiment of the invention has been shown and described herein it is not intended to-limit the invention to such disclosure within the scope of the following claims.

What we claim is: '1 a l. Sheet separating and feeding apparatus comprising a table structure having a plane top surface-a, first conveyor assembly having the terminal end portion of its upper course extending substantially in the plane of said table top to deliver and deposit onto the table top a pair of '4 superimposed sheets, means to stop said conveyor after depositing a pair of sheets on said table top, a second conveyor extending endwise from the terminal end of the first conveyor, a pair of vertically arranged nip rolls mounted intermediate the table and theadjacent end of the second conveyor, drive means for said second conveyor and the nip rolls, and a rotary member adjacent the receiving end of the table operable duringidleness of the first conveyor to advance the upper sheet of said pair and engage the leading edge thereof between the nip rolls which operate to feed said upper sheet onto the second conveyor, said stop means for the first conveyor being operable to re-start the first conveyor after a preselected interval of time to cause the same to advance the bottom sheet and engage its leading edge with the nip rolls and feed said bottom sheet onto the second conveyor.

2. Sheet separating and feeding apparatus comprising a table structure :having a plane top surface provided with a plurality of longitudinally extending slots therein, a first conveyor assembly comprising a plurality of endless belts each having the terminal end portion of its upper course disposed in one of said slots and extending substantially in the plane of said'table top to deliver and deposit onto the table top a pair of superimposed sheets, means'to stop said conveyor after depositing a pair of sheets on said table top, a second conveyor extending endwise from the terminal end of the first conveyor, a pair of vertically arranged nip rolls mounted intermediate the table and the adjacent end of the second conveyor, drive means for said second conveyor and the nip rolls, and a rotary member adjacent the receiving end of the table having resilient fingers operable during idleness of the first conveyor to advance the upper sheet of said pair'and engage the leading edge thereof between the nip rolls which operate to feed said upper sheet onto the second conveyor, said stop means for the first conveyor being operable to restart the first conveyor after a preselectedlnterval of time to cause the same to advance the bottom sheet and engage its leading edge with the nip rolls and feedsaid bottom sheet onto the=second conveyor. v

I ERIK JOHANSSON.

. BERTIL BERGVALL.

UNO ALFREDSSON;

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

V UNITED STATES PATENTS 

